An end structure of a vehicle includes a cross vehicle structure, e.g., a front bumper assembly or a rear bumper assembly, connected to a frame of the vehicle. In particular, the frame of the vehicle includes rails and cross-members extending between the rails, and the bumper assembly may be connected to the rails. The bumper assembly may include a bumper beam and a fascia covering the bumper beam. The bumper beam is relatively rigid, e.g., formed of metal, and may be engaged by an object during a collision with the object. The fascia is relatively pliable and provides an aesthetic exterior appearance.
Crash cans may connect the bumper beam to the rails. The crash cans may be directly connected to the rails. For example, the crash can and the rail may present flanges that abut each other and are fixed to each other with fasteners, e.g., threaded bolts. The crash cans are designed to crumple. The collapse of the crash can absorb energy upon impact of the bumper beam with an object during a collision. For example, during a collision, the crash can may collapse to about 70-80% of a pre-collision length.
The crush cans are designed to separate the bumper beam from a back panel of the body that extends between the frame and the bumper beam. The back panel is deformable relative to the bumper beam, e.g., is sheet metal, such that contact between the bumper beam and the back panel damages the back panel. In such situations, the back panel must be repaired or replaced, which is costly and negatively affects the performance rating of the vehicle during a low speed damageability (LSD) test. The LSD test is a standardized test event measuring the amount of damage to a vehicle during a low speed impact.
For aesthetic purposes, some vehicles are designed with tight packaging constraints in the bumper assembly, e.g., low profile bumper assemblies. However, these tight packaging constraints reduce the amount of space for crash cans.
As such, there remains an opportunity to develop an improved end structure to have satisfactory performance as the bumper beam approaches the rail and back panel, and to have satisfactory performance during LDS tests.